There was a time when power announced itself softly. A calm voice. A measured reply. A smile that said, I am not threatened by questions. Those days seem to be slipping quietly out the back door of our Parliament, leaving behind raised voices, clenched jaws, and the unmistakable sound of…
Robert Clements is a journalist and newspaper columnist. With an estimated 6 million readership, his column, Bob’s Banter is published in over 30 newspapers and magazines in nearly every state in India, as well as in the top newspapers of Bangladesh, London and Dubai and is also translated into Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu.
Lord Give Me Such Faith..!
I was seeing him after many years and for a moment I wondered if it was the same person. Time and illness had changed him. Years ago, when I had done some advertising work for his company, he was the head of the organisation. Confident and sharp minded. When he…
A Play Worth Watching…!
Tonight, I walk into a theatre not as a spectator but as a curious onlooker of my own creation. I go to watch a play I have written. Not to soak in applause. Not to count the claps or measure the decibel level of appreciation. I go for something far…
The Strange Music of Surrender..!
It is easy to say, ‘surrender to God’. It sounds noble. It sounds spiritual. It sounds like something saints do while glowing softly under a halo of warm light. But let me tell you, surrender is rarely that dramatic. Often it is as simple, and as confusing, as standing in…
Tirupati Dupatta and Christmas Cake..!
This year at the Christmas fairs, was it my imagination that made me notice something unusual? Instead of drifting lazily from stall to stall, shoppers were huddled around the cake counters with the seriousness of detectives examining evidence. “Does this cake have enough nuts?” one auntie asked, tapping the box…
No Invite for Rahul..!
No invite for Rahul at the Putin Banquet last week. The news channels buzzed like bees around a honey pot, reporters breathlessly repeating the same line as though they had discovered a new planet. No invitation. Shocking. Mind boggling. But then a thought crept up quietly and tapped me on…
Peace and chalk Piece…!
There was a time when peace meant something beautiful. It meant neighbours chatting at the gate. It meant children playing cricket without worrying about which side of the street they lived on. It meant laughter floating out of living rooms and chai shared between people with different ideas and beliefs….
Just an Indigo Thought..!
Chaos reigns in the skies. Delayed flights, stranded passengers, cancelled schedules, and angry crowds waving boarding passes like protest flags. As I watch this spectacle, a thought tiptoes into my mind. India has the maximum number of road accidents in the world. And many of these accidents happen because drivers…
Preparations for Christmas..!
There was a time when the first of December arrived with the mellow voice of Jim Reeves singing “Silver Bells” or “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” Suddenly the neighbourhood stirred. Curtains were pushed aside, children peeped out, mothers smiled knowingly, and fathers nodded that it was time to pull out…
Are We Back at School?
How quickly we grow up and imagine we have stopped behaving like children.But all it takes is a little observation and suddenly the entire political landscape looks like the school playground we all once knew so well. Do you remember those days?The strong fellow in class. The one with bulging…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.